Development of Infographic Character Design of Malaysian Mah Meri Tribe’S Animal Masks As Learning Media of Traditional Masks

Abstract

Malaysian Mah Meri Tribe’s Mask is one primitive mask which existence has become an artifact stored in the museum and a learning media for younger generations on their culture. Masks that had been created are representations of ancestors and they were used in worshipping ceremonies dedicated to the ancestors. The mask is used for funerals (tiwah), fertility rites, and serves as the provision of the dead in the grave or as the grave watcher (Martono: 2017). Mah Meri tribe is a sub-ethnic group of orang asli who live along the Selangor coast. This community group has settled for a long time in the region and their daily life is farming. Among the routine life of the Mah Meri tribe, there is the Mah Meri mask dance that tells the history of the ancestors of the tribal people who represent animals that live on the ground, in swamps or rivers which they encountered, both having good and bad impacts on their lives. The problem arose when the Mah Meri Tribe animal mask was displayed in the Museum of Asian Art with a lack of information, this is not enough to be used as a learning medium. The research method used is Borg and Gall’s development model which simplified into 4 steps namely: (1). research and information collecting, (2). Planning, (3). develop a preliminary form of product, (4). final product revision. The result of this development is a learning media application that can help tourists of all ages to learn the mask of Orang Asli of Malaysia at the museum more easily. Keywords: Character Design, Infographics, Mask, Mah Meri